Recently we went up to Mt Rainer do to some training for belay and haul line techniques. I could write an entire post just on those two topics, but it was what happened once the training was over that inspires today’s topic.
As the team was returning from Panoramic Peak we saw in the distance a person who was walking towards us, but just didn’t seem to fit into the surroundings. We were in 20 degree temps with 15-20 mph winds creating a windchill of around 10-14 degrees and the person we saw was wearing a dress shirt, a wool overcoat, a furry hat, skinny jeans, and what looked like canvas loafers. Then it happened…..
Like a start to a wilderness EMS scenario the person looked at us, then started waving their arms, and shouting for help! He was above us by about 100 feet and not on a trail. We told him to stay put because we knew that if he walked towards us he might post hole into the snow- or worse fall into a tree pit. As we approached him we saw that he had no gloves, glasses, snowshoes, nor anything else to really protect him from the weather and the environment. He was shaking from being cold and from nerves. He then told us he was following a trail from the carpark and then lost the trail in the snow. This was his first time ever in snow and on Mt Rainer.
We did a quick assessment of him and realized that he wasn’t in the beginning stages of a cold injury but we knew that he wouldn’t go on like this too much longer. We gave him some of our extra gloves to keep his hands warm and one of our shell coats to keep the wind from getting through his clothes and dropping his core temperature. Then we quickly had him follow us down to the main trail and got him moving.This did two functions- first it got him out of the danger area and back to the visitors center (a 20 minute walk from where we were) and two by getting him moving he started to warm up.
Once we got back to the car park / visitor’s center we discovered that he had travelled with a tour bus up to Mt Rainer. The tour company sets up visits to Mt Rainer for mainly Asian tourist and they do not explain the severity of the weather and the importance of staying on the trails up on the mountain. After returning our gear he thanked us and then left for the visitor’s center.
Afterwards the team just looked at each other and thought, “if he hadn’t of ran into us we’d be back out there later with the Mountain Rescue Unit and it might not have turned out as nice”. But we also realized that all of our Wilderness EMS training had prepared us for this situation. We knew how to calm down a person in distress. We knew how to assess them for potential environmental injury. We knew how to treat them and how to make a plan for their rescue or lead them out. We knew all of this because we were prepared. The mountains can be extremely beautiful, but must always be treated with respect being as weather changes any moment. But you must also be prepared to assist others in cause of emergencies- and sometimes by being prepared you stop an emergency from happing in the first place. On your next adventure make sure that you plan before you go. Take the 10 essentials, take a wilderness EMS course, and take a friend (even if it’s just a GPS and a phone!). But most importantly- always be prepared!